: a list or group of individuals who are prominent but not important or popular enough to be on the A-list

Examples of B-list in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The A-list includes immediate and necessary improvements, while the B-list contains improvements that can be done down the road but that aren’t necessary. Kristine Gill, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 June 2025 There’s a self-awareness to making such B-list talent the face of a tacky news broadcast in a dystopic vision of the future that feels endearing. Jordan Crucchiola, Vulture, 4 Apr. 2025 There’s no sense of adventure, just an annoying kid staring at various captive creatures while bored B-list actors recite bad jokes on the soundtrack. Josh Bell, Vulture, 21 Mar. 2025 Maybe this redundant speech by a B-list supervillain will motivate the new Cap to do exactly that. Eliana Dockterman, TIME, 14 Feb. 2025 Being on Washington’s B-list is the last place Tokyo wants to be as Trump launches a trade war like Asia has never seen before. William Pesek, Forbes, 3 Jan. 2025 There’s no sense of adventure, just an annoying kid staring at various captive creatures while bored B-list actors recite bad jokes on the soundtrack. 23. Josh Bell, Vulture, 20 Dec. 2024 But Trump has embraced a curious menagerie of B-list rappers and questionable influencers thought to hold sway among young Black men. The New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2024 Both of us knew that in 2006, Heff earned permanent Hollywood B-list infamy as the screenwriter of Snakes on a Plane, the cult classic, so-bad-it’s-good Samuel L. Jackson thriller with the title that explains the movie’s entire plot. Mark Oppenheimer, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1935, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of B-list was in 1935

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Cite this Entry

“B-list.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/B-list. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.

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